westmarchsagafandomcom-20200214-history
WM/Treks/Log 3-10
Narrator: The delvers are four days out of Polisberg, fighting desparately against a bunch of antmen beneath their mound. GM: ROUND22: Your turn now, Antman Officer 1. Antman Warrior 12: "All iz lozd!" Panicks and flees, along with 8 and 10. They drop their bucklers and halberds as they go. Antman Knight: "Vall bakk! Ve muzd ked acrozz zee vimal kuard!" Hits Artegal with sword thrust result: ?succeeded by 7 » and halberd stab result: ?succeeded by 0 » while making a committed double step back Antman Knight: Both attacks at DA-4/-2 Antman Wizard: Moves backwards. Artegal: How'd he end up 3 steps away? I'm confused. Ahwell. Dodge both! result: ?succeeded by 4 » and result: ?succeeded by 6 » GM: He started a step away, moved back 2. Artegal: Ah, sword thrust is reach 2. I'm happy! Artegal: (And mourning my piddly little Reach 1 sword.) Antman Winged Archer: Clumsy flying tricks result: ?failed by 2 » Antman Winged Archer: Can't get lift, sputters along. Antman Officer 1: Drops his halberd, moves and readies the priest (picks him up, anyway) result: ?succeeded by 0 » Huge Antman: Pokes Wolfgang with a full-size halberd result: ?succeeded by 3 » DA-4/-2 and whacks him with a dueling halberd result: ?succeeded by 1 » DA-4/-2 Wolfgang: Parry with Axe(16) result: ?succeeded by 5 Wolfgang: Parry with Axe(14) result: ?succeeded by 1 Huge Antman: Breaks the axe? 5 GM: ROUND23: Your turn now, Artegal. Artegal: "Stop where you are! We can end the fighting now - just give us the pixie prisoners, and we'll leave you and your people in peace." Artegal: (Diplomacy?) GM: Uhm. Sure, at -10. Artegal: Diplomacy: result: ?failed by 4 » Artegal: Luck! Artegal: Diplomacy: result: ?CRITICALLY SUCCEEDED by 6 » Artegal: Diplomacy: result: ?failed by 6 » Ystävä: Nice. Artegal: I like crits. Ystävä: They mean you rolled low Artegal: Which reminds me, Tactics: result: ?succeeded by 3 » Narrator: The antmen swivel their heads at Artegal's offer. GM: ROUND23: Your turn now, Ystävä. Ystävä: Swivel heads? Ystävä: Weird. Ystävä: Turned two faces, half move... is that all my movement or do I have one hex left? GM: You're only move 4, so I think you're done. Ystävä: Yay! GM: ROUND23: Your turn now, Beltarne. Beltarne: Step back, AoD(Double) Beltarne: ### GM: ROUND23: Your turn now, Wolfgang. Wolfgang: step, rapid strike a beat on the big guy's halberds (one each) Artegal: Interesting choice. GM: I don't think you can do that. He didn't parry your last attacks and you didn't parry his. Wolfgang: um, yes I did Artegal: Wolfgang parried his last two attacks. Wolfgang: huge guy GM: Doh, totally forgot, sorry. Wolfgang: so, +3 for ST and -3 for rapid strike cancel out, +2 for balanced and weapon bonded axe Wolfgang: Axe/Mace result: ?CRITICALLY SUCCEEDED by 17 Wolfgang: Axe/Mace result: ?succeeded by 12 Artegal: Yikes. Huge Antman: Resist with ST result: ?succeeded by 8 » and result: ?succeeded by 14 » Wolfgang: luck on his by 14 Huge Antman: Reroll with ST result: ?succeeded by 12 » and result: ?failed by 5 » Huge Antman: Last result is a success by 5, actually. Artegal: Right. Artegal: Still, -9 and -7 on parries is pain. GM: ROUND23: Your turn now, Torvall. Torvall: Resist Bloodlust - result: ?failed by 2 » Artegal: Tactics. Torvall: Resist Bloodlust - result: ?succeeded by 0 » Ystävä: Well played. Artegal: "Keep your head, god-botherer. We've won this fight." Wolfgang: "Drop your weapons!" Torvall: Step forward and use intimidate. "Surrender now and you may live to see the dawn!" Torvall: result: ?succeeded by 1 » Antman Knight: Resist fear result: ?succeeded by 5 » GM: ROUND23: Your turn now, Antman Officer 1. Antman Knight: All-out defend (double) and step to the side. "Ve vill mod led you murder uz all" Antman Wizard: Back up, moving. Huge Antman: Back up, moving. Artegal: "Your alternative appears to be to release the prisoners to our custody. Choose." Antman Winged Archer: Try to fly again result: ?failed by 4 » Antman Knight: ""Kome no klozer and ve vill releaze zhe blizonerz zhordly. You may nod kome indo zhe zendral hive" GM: We're out of combat now unless you guys want to push forward. Torvall: ((No Bloodlust = me good )) Artegal nods and straightens, sheathing his sword. "We will wait." Wolfgang: My bloodlust! 7 Wolfgang: yah, NP Beltarne takes a knee next to the prisoner and catches his breath. Wolfgang collects valuable weapons in a pile Antman Knight: "Ziz bassake iz dlabbed and vill kruzz you iv you dlezbazz bud you vill no doubd murder our beoblez in zhiz moumd ve vill blink zee blizonerz zhordly." Narrator: The antmen retreat into the hallway and move out of sight around a bend, leaving the largest one and the mage behind to watch. Wolfgang: "I keep my bargins bug men!" Ystävä: "You will with the bringing the flower people!" Narrator: A while later, they return along with a mass of antmen carrying many bags that flutter and jump. Their warleader approaches. Ystävä: How much later? Do we recover FP? Beltarne: ((Going arround administering First Aid to the needy)) GM: About 20 minutes I guess? Ystävä: oooh, Beltarne gets FP back Ystävä: (and so do I, thank god) Beltarne: He sure does Beltarne: Though I think this fight definitely lasted long enough that I should have lost some as well at the end for encumbrance. Wolfgang: yah, 1+enc level, right? Beltarne: Yup GM: 22 rounds, 1+enc fatigue loss, yep. Beltarne: Unless it exceptionally hot down here or something Ystävä: Everyone does, yup. ANd I get exactly that back from the rest, yay fit. Torvall: I was at 1 when it ended... Antman Knight: "Here are zhe blizomerz you may dake zhem." He stops, head and antennae swiveling. "Zey zhould mod imdlude om zhe zvambs akaim." He pauses again. "Are your zheir new zoldierz or are you milizia or merzemaliez" GM: Then you take another point of damage when you go to -1 fatigue. GM: (That's for Torvall) Torvall: Roger Ystävä: (( I'm not sure we should admit any of that but Ystava's an idiot and doesn't understand him anyways. )) Artegal accepts the bag full of what one can only assume are pixies. "We're best classed as mercenary irregulars. I will be taking steps to ensure that there is no further tresspass on your lands." He looks around. "Are we ready to move out, gentlemen?" GM: Actually, there are about 20-30 bags here, and yes, there are squeaky voices talking from inside them. Torvall: "We sholuld make sure this is all of the pixie prisoners, friend Artegal." Ystävä: 20-30 bags? Holy crap. Wolfgang: (( was I able to gather swords and other dropped weapons? )) Wolfgang: wow GM: Wolfgang, yes. Ystävä: (( ... I recommend leaving pixies in bags until we get away. )) Ystävä: (( I played a pixie. )) Antman Knight: "Vhen your kondlacd viz zee bezdz iz over vill you be lookink vor more vork" Beltarne: ((Yeah)) Wolfgang: (( yah, good idea )) Artegal: "These... creatures... know what will happen if we discover that they haven't returned all of the prisoners. As for more work..." he shrugs. "We're always looking for work." Wolfgang: "The better paying the more interested we are!" Beltarne: "Aye." Beltarne: "Though it helps if a pretty girl is asking." Wolfgang: (( so, we gather our spoils and leave? )) Ystävä: "The lady bugs are the pretty bugs. Beltarne: ((We do!)) Ystävä: Indeed! Ystävä: Spoils, rescuees, wahtever. Wolfgang: (( as long as they can be eventually converted into wealth! )) Antman Knight: "Ve have leleazed all zhe blizomerz bud ve hav a bloblem zat you have made vorze and anozer dazk you could elb viz zhe okrez ave daken our mimes ve vill bay you a bound ov kold iv you kill zhem or ve vill bay you zhe zame iv you devead zhe ladz ad Verzklovd zo zad ve may dlade viz zhe zmizz dilecdly and nod zlough zhoze kleedy koblims" Wolfgang: (( so, we hoof it back the the pixies, checking the back train just in case? )) Antman Knight: It all comes out in, well, not a big rush, but an endless monotone. Wolfgang: "Er, did he say he has problems with some filthy greenskins?" Ystävä: Orks taken the mines, will pay you a mound of gold, I like that. Torvall: "I do believe he meant a pound, friend." Ystävä: "Aw. That is smaller than a mound." Antman Knight: "Mo ve vill mod bay you do kill zee koblims zhey are vilzy and kleedy bud id iz Verzklovd zhad iz zhe bloblem" Artegal: "We'll need to return to Polisberg to resupply and refit. We'll consider your offer. For now, we have to complete this contract." Beltarne hums a oddly familiar and catchy tune under his breath. Artegal: "Leave their weapons, the pixies are paying us enough. Let's be off." Antman Knight: "Vely vell dake zis mab it vill lead you do zhe okres iv you kooze do kill zhem blink uz zeir eadz and ve vill bay you or zee ladz iv vine doo zhey are vermin." Wolfgang: (( oh man... )) Ystävä: "Wait." Antman Knight: Swivels his head and antennae at Artegal's last remark. Wolfgang: greedy? 10 Ystävä: "The Orks? Or... The Ogres?" Artegal: "Ogres." GM: Also, greedy people need to roll at -5 to not ignore Artegal - there's a lot of money on the ground. Ystävä twitches. Beltarne: Same result: ?failed by 1 » Antman Knight: "I zaid okrez can'd you ear?" Artegal: "You know. Not as big or as strong as you, Ystava?" Wolfgang whispers "Come on, to the victor the spoils, plus the pixies are tapped out" Beltarne: "Spoils of war, my valiant friend. They shouldn't have tried to kill us with them." Wolfgang totally ignores him Ystävä grins toothily. "I like with the smashing of the big ogres and their heads make with the big crunching noises." Artegal looks around, then looks at the Antman officer with a 'what are you going to do' sort of shrug. "Mercenaries. Sorry, chap." Beltarne helps Wolfgang pick up l3wt Narrator: The antmen look hang dog but do not object as the delvers take the weapons up. Artegal knows better than to overrule the party on money. Artegal: I think that's our cue to take their map and leave. Beltarne: Yup GM: New map is up on the accumulated map page. Ystävä: We have so many maps, which one is the ant map? Ystävä: Far left? Beltarne: left side Ystävä: Far left! Ystävä: Aha. Artegal: The one with labels like 'Rat Bastards' and 'Winged Punks'. GM: I just forced everyone to it. Beltarne: No means no, Mark Ystävä: Hey, it shows a nice set of roads there too. Ystävä: How useful. Artegal: "Tunnels" Artegal: Not roads. Ystävä: There's the road to the ghost ruins. Ystävä: We traveled down that. Beltarne: I think these guys might be a tad xenophobic Ystävä: I want to know who "Them" are. Narrator: The delvers pick up the loot, and burdened by it and their bags of pixies, stagger toward the exit. Artegal: Y'think. Beltarne: Also, lizard pirates! Wolfgang: (( gee, really? )) Artegal: I'm sorely tempted to keep the pixies in bags until we get back to the woods. Beltarne: I think that's a good idea Artegal: Unfortunately, returning smurfs instead of pixies would be bad. Wolfgang: we need to at least get a head count Wolfgang: maybe open them once out of sight of the mound Ystävä: Nyeheh. Wolfgang: one or two Beltarne: Why? Either they dealt with us honestly or they didn't Wolfgang: true Beltarne: Do we know exactly how many are missing? Artegal: Pixies breathe, right? Ystävä: (( killing the rescuees would suck. )) Beltarne: You can breath through a sack. Wolfgang: plus, we shouldn't trust the pixies either most likely Ystävä: (( you can also suffocate in a sack. )) Beltarne: Only if your GM: Speaking of, there's a lot of loot there: 18 or so sets of shortsword, halberd, and buckler; a pair of repeating crossbows and a mess of swords and bucklers, and the priest's shield, mace, and staff. Beltarne: you're tiny and stupi.... ooooohhhhh Wolfgang: SHINEY!!!!!!! Beltarne: Definitely keeping the repeating crossbows Wolfgang: yah, most valuable thing there Beltarne: I'd be okay with leaving the bucklers. GM: Anyone have Armory (Missile weapons)? Wolfgang: all the swords Wolfgang: no, but they are COOL Wolfgang: therefore expensive! Wolfgang: yah, shields are rarely worth it Artegal: There's a default between armory specializations at this TL, right? GM: The mace is well-made and well-worned. The knightly takes quickly recognize that is balanced and crafted in a dwarven style, though from the way the grips are set, most likely made by the antmen themselves. Artegal: Still usable by normal folks? Beltarne: We dump the bucklers and strap everything else to bonnie and clyde. Beltarne: Right? Ystävä: With adjustment by an armorer or something? GM: Some of the bucklers are finely made, and one of the crossbows (the one on the net thrower) has a set of sights. The mace has grips for three hands, but it is a conventional mace. GM: Also, everyone make IQ rolls. GM: Ystava makes his at +1. Artegal: IQ: result: ?succeeded by 0 » Wolfgang: IQ check result: ?failed by 2 Beltarne: result: ?succeeded by 7 » Torvall: IQ result: ?failed by 2 » Wolfgang: (( I've got armory (other) at 9 from defaulting off my regular one )) Ystävä: One sec Ystävä: Armoury/TL3 (Melee Weapons) result: ?succeeded by 1» Ystävä: O.o Ystävä does a happy dance of comprehension. Wolfgang: (( which is body armor, so totally useless )) Ystävä: OH., damn Ystävä: Not Armory, IQ? Artegal: IQ. Ystävä: Well 10 fails against my IQ by 1 Wolfgang: hmm, luck up? GM: Wolfgang, no. Wolfgang: oh well Ystävä: Mine is, but my odds aren't good. Ystävä: Especially my odds of communicating with other pcs Ystävä: Screw it. Sure. Luck. Wolfgang: if it's important maybe someone will tell me Ystävä: IQ check result: ?succeeded by 0» GM whispers to Artegal: You remember Ystava saying something about the floor. Ystävä: IQ check result: ?failed by 1» Ystävä: I'll take success by 0! GM whispers to Nate: You remember Ystava saying something about the floor. GM whispers to Ystävä: As you approach the trapped floor, you remember there was something about it that bothered you. Beltarne: What was that you said earlier about the floor, Ystava? Ystävä: "The board things. They got the board things with the slots and going in the end." Artegal: "The barricades? They weren't particularly special." Beltarne: The pit trap? Wolfgang: "they had more traps we didn't spring?" Ystävä: (( someone who's not an idiot should probably look at it anyways. )) Ystävä: (( if nothing else, we need to cross the pit and baords would be handy. )) Wolfgang: (( so, Beltarne, ok )) Beltarne: Yeah. Wolfgang: we're not out now? GM: Not yet. Beltarne: Alright, so we go into the hole, reverse the boards up the other side, and we're good/ Beltarne: ? GM: Say what? Wolfgang: "So, we need to do something to not fall into the pit trap?" Ystävä: The pits 30 feet deep, I don't think they'l reach. Beltarne: I dunno, I honestly have a really poor visual image of what kind of hazard it represents. Ystävä: Let alone be a ramp. Beltarne: I thought that's how we got out. Beltarne: Or you guys, rather Ystävä: Artie and I went through a tunnel. Narrator: As the delvers approach the pit trap, they can see a piece of wood stuck into the slot in the ground. Unlike when they saw it earlier, the stick is canted towards them instead of away. Wolfgang: didn't it reclose? Beltarne: We THROW THE LEVER! Beltarne: Sorry, too much dwarf fortress. Ystävä: (( I can hear it in my head. Good job. )) GM: It could be a lever, sure. Wolfgang: "Um, which setting is safe to walk on?" Beltarne: How did we get across it ourselves? GM: Oh, wait. Beltarne: We kind of segued past that part, IIRC GM: Important note: the bugmen asked if you wanted the non-pixie prisoner, too. Wolfgang: I missed that session GM: Which I assume you did. Beltarne: Ah. Sure GM: So they released Bedlam. Artegal: Hello, traps and locks guy! Beltarne: Hooray! Narrator: Along with the bags of pixies, the antmen bring out a man nearly as tall as Ystava and carefully hand him a sheathed sword as tall as he is and a massive harpoon. Ystävä: "You not that big." Bedlam: "He surveys the area and quickly spots his rescuers. He greets them with a slight smile as they appear to be delvers." GM: Also, when Wolfgang, Beltarne, and Torvall crossed the pit trap with their prisoners, they just walked across it (behind said prisoners) and nothing happened. Beltarne: Well, then I definitely throw the lever then. Then we tie a rope around me and I walk across while Ystava belays me. Unless our new party member has a contribution. Wolfgang helps belay as well Artegal eyes the newcomer. "Artegal, Knight of the Court of the Mist, bodyguard as was to the Ambassador Duke Weyland, and for my sins the apparent tactical advisor to this motley group of mercenaries. A pleasure, sir." Bedlam fixes the enormous sword onto his back with a twist of the grip to hold it in place, and gets the rest of his gear sorted. Narrator: The lever grinds and Beltarne has to grunt a bit to shove it the other way, and something moves beneath the delvers' feet. They then pass uneventfully across the pit trap, Beltarne in the lead. Bedlam: "Bedlam Smith, of the mountains, at your service." Artegal: "Why do they even have that lever?" Bedlam: ((my token is on the states page, btw, if you didn't notice, mark)) Wolfgang: "Wolfgang Steinflugel, no fancy titles." Beltarne: "Beltarne Rockholm, Brother of Tyr, nice to meet you, and if you'll forgive me more in-depth introductions will have to wait until we're away from the trap infested labrynth." Bedlam: ((also, where's my ally?)) Ystävä: "I am the Ystava Bear Rider!" Bedlam: "He nods solemnly at the wise words of the dwarven cleric." Torvall: "Greetings friend. Torvall Adarka, holy warrior of the 8 Way Path." GM: Your ally didn't get captured like you did, so you don't know. Also, Mouser didn't get converted into stew for hungry antmen larvae, so it's a win-win situation. Bedlam: ((quick question - who is the weirdest looking one of the bunch?)) Artegal: ((Wolfgang's a gargoyle, Ystava's a minotaur, and Artegal's a Nymph. Define 'weird'. Ystävä: (( Probably me. I've got 3 yard long horns. )) Ystävä: (( so I'm weird for a minotaur. )) Wolfgang: (( me or Horns!!!! )) Bedlam approaches Wolfgang and holds out his hand. "Hello, there, friend! I haven't met one of your sort before. What are you, a rock man or something?" Wolfgang: (( I may be the first gargoyle you've met that isn't *filthy* )) GM: Bedlam: uhm... ruggedly handsome and noble nymph in shining copper armor; tired looking human in battered iron plate; dwarf with a braided beard in even more battered mail; surprisingly handsome gargoyle in battered iron plate the color of his skin; huge minotaur with 8' long horns and massively battered and penetrated armor. GM: Dunno how you define weird. Wolfgang: "Ha! Some call my kind that, but I'm a Gargoyle to most." Artegal: ((Go go gadget Sartorial Integrity!)) Wolfgang shakes his hand Ystävä: (( go go not eating it with your HPs )) Bedlam: "Gargoyle indeed. You'll have to regale me some time with stories of your people." Wolfgang: "Better ask a bard for most of that kind of thing, I've got a few stories from my adventures though." Bedlam: "Good! Good!" Bedlam addresses the group. "If you fine folks don't mind, I'd like to be out of this place as soon as possible. I have a friend waiting for me." Wolfgang: "I think we're almost there..." GM: Balnanced fine medium buckler - keep or throw? Wolfgang: (( we out yet? )) Wolfgang: keep! GM: And balanced dwarven mace? Wolfgang: keep! Wolfgang: I think we have room on the horses Beltarne: If not, we can dump stuff when we get to them and figure that out. Artegal: Yar. Wolfgang: we might want to dump the cheap halberds Artegal: For now, we haul everything out. For that matter, we have less valuable loot on the horses that we can rid ourselves of if it comes to it. Ystävä is obviously promoted to pack mule. Wolfgang: 12 lbs. for $60 Ystävä: Yeah, the halberds aren't the most economical. GM: After you stick 18 shortswords on them, 5 broadswords, 4 repeater crossbows, a heavy crossbow with sight, and a mace and shield... they may be overloaded. GM: A quick balanced packing puts you at 235 lbs per horse. Wolfgang: 18 short swords!!! wow Beltarne: Halbards go first. Wolfgang: yah, dumping them for sure Ystävä: Not all of them. Wolfgang: you want one to use? Ystävä: Shortswords are what, 400$? Ystävä: Or are they cheap? Wolfgang: I ment the halberds Wolfgang: even cheap that's a lot Ystävä: I like the mace. It might be better than my axe. Ystävä: Balanced, dwarven? Narrator: The delvers emerge into the sunlight, having only spent an hour or two underground. The sun is dropping rapidly toward the towering black stone mountains to the west. Artegal: Balanced, Dwarven, Not Oversized. Ystävä: My axe is neither balanced nor dwarven. I really don't need bonus damage, just "Swing" GM: Shortswords are cheap. Ystävä: and skill bonus is nice Ystävä would like to be healed before travelling far. Beltarne: First aid for Ystava! Ystävä: HP 1 is bad for travelling >.> Wolfgang could use some healing as well Beltarne: First Aid/TL3 (Human) result: ?succeeded by 6 Beltarne: 3 Ystävä: *2 for large HP! Beltarne: doubled to 6 for Ystava Ystävä: 0.35 Beltarne: First Aid/TL3 (Human) result: ?succeeded by 5 Narrator: A few minutes after they leave the cave mouth, a massive black cat - some kind of jaguar or panther or tiger - drops on the ground out of the trees next to Bedlam. It puts its paws on his shoulders, licks his face affectionately, then rears back and bats him across the face. With a shake of its tail, it stalks off, sneering at him over its shoulder. Ystävä: Still at 1/2 HP sad. Beltarne: 6 for Wolfgang Beltarne: "Gyah!" Bedlam grins. Ystävä: "Shoo! Shoo kitty! Get off the guy!" Wolfgang is fully healed by the expert bandaging Torvall: "Give me time friend minotaur and I can get you feeling well again. I just need some rest first." Artegal: half-draws his sword, then stares at Bedlam. "Not that I've any ground to stand on, but you've got some strange companions, friend." Bedlam: "Fear not, my friends, that is merely my kitty. He is my friend." Wolfgang: "Nice cat." Beltarne: "Oh. Good. That's good." Ystävä harumphs. Torvall: "Kitty he says..." Bedlam: "Though I think he's a bit peeved at my absense." Beltarne: "I agree, Ystava. It's no bear." Mouser: Evaluates the delvers, then licks its fur ostenatiously. Beltarne: "But a fine specimin nonetheless." Ystävä nods in agreement with Beltarne. "Too small for the riding. The bendy in the middle." GM: Also, the winds are really blowing strong. Bedlam: ((like, how strong?)) Wolfgang: (( that usually means I can't fly )) GM: Not hurricane force, but enough to definitely feel it and to make flying a little unsafe and slow. Bedlam: "He inhales deeply, enjoying the refreshing breeze." Artegal: I think we still need to let the pixies out of the bags. Bedlam: "Fine weather, is it not, my fellows?" Artegal: So we march off until the mounds are out of sight, then do that? Wolfgang: you can talk us into it once we are away from the mound I am sure Bedlam: "Speaking of bags, I've been meaning to ask... what's in them and why are they wiggling?" Wolfgang secures his belongings Beltarne: "Pixies. We were asked to come and rescue them by some trade partners of ours." Wolfgang: "Pixies, your fellow prisoners" Ystävä: Ystava will grumble to the flower people in the bags about the mud and the wind blowing in the ear. Bedlam: "Ah! I thought they were perhaps some strange birds." Bedlam: "Mouser will be disappointed to find that out, I think." Bedlam laughs. Ystävä: "They not the little birds, they the little flower peoples with the drinking and the flying." Ystävä: "And the wearing the flowers on the head but that is when the drinking I think." Bedlam: "Great! I love meeting new folks." Artegal: (Test) Ystävä: "I wear the barrel on the head once when the drinking." Narrator: Nearly three dozen pixies tumble out of the bags, flitting about in the wind and getting blown around for their troubles. In desparation, they all start landing on Ystava's horns, laughing to each other as they survey the area for their new perch. Beltarne: "That... is quite the look, lad." Ystävä keeps trying to turn his head to fix his eyes on his new passengers. This doesn't work. Beltarne: "Shame Minnizig isn't here. I'm sure she could come up with a limmerick or two." Torvall: "Ystävä the aviary." Ystävä tosses his head from side to side, then settles for rolling his eyeballs around in their sockets alot. Bedlam: "Oh! Those guys. They don't look much like birds in the light." Eagle Sunshine Daisy: "Hello! Thank you for rescuing us! You did come to rescue us, did you not? The Mayor sent you? If not, it was uncommonly kind of you to come release us anyway." Eagle Sunshine Daisy: "You should take us back to Baile Mordred. The Mayor will probably reward you if you do that. We'll ride on this most excellent conveyance that you brought. Where did you find it?" Artegal: "We were sent by the mayor, yes. We rescued you at considerable personal danger to ourselves, and you'll kindly repay us by not giving us any cause to regret doing so. I'm already not at all convinced that what we just did was legal, and am choosing not to examine the facts too closely." Beltarne: "What? Of course it was legal." Ystävä: "That is the lot of the little people." Beltarne: "Unrestrained tyranny is what it was." Wolfgang: "Yah, we're going back there, you just better hope there is still some wine left!" Bedlam: "The law is not always about justice, or what is right, my short friend." Beltarne: ((I AM the law!!!)) Beltarne: ((But pretend I had a stroke and am saying that.)) Eagle Sunshine Daisy: "What do you mean, illegal? We were set upon and kidnapped by bandits, ruffians, spoilsports, and dullards who entirely lacked a sense of humor. Rescuing us from that lot is a public service. They'll probably... well, we don't have many tools, they can't raise a statue in your honor and you'd porbably think it was rather small anyway." Bedlam: "Your thanks is reward enough, tiny friend." Artegal: "As I said, I'm choosing not to examine the facts closely. Let's be off." Torvall: "It may be for you friend Bedlam, but I highly doubt thanks is all that Beltarne wants." Narrator: As the pixies chatter and laugh irrepressively atop Ystava's horns, calling out "Gee" and "Haw" and "Whoa!" and "G'up!" the delvers march into the swamp. GM: Just checking: returning directly to the pixie forest? Artegal: Indeed! Wolfgang: best speed! Ystävä starts off amused, and seguays into irritable. Ystävä: "This is not the word. And this is not the word. Not the words. Mutter. Grumble." Eagle Sunshine Daisy: "It talks? Where did you find such a marvelous beast? You must tell us, we'll have to buy one. Assuming we can get there. And afford it. And it isn't a one-of-a-kind marvel of the world. That is what it is, is it not?" Beltarne: "He's one of a kind, all right." Beltarne: "I've never seen a minotaur with such vast... tracks of horns." Ystävä is briefly cheered up by this. "I have the best horns." Narrator: The delvers push through the swamp and across to the pixie forest, where Eagle Sunshine Daisy directs Ystava to Baile Mordred by tugging on the minotaur's ears. Ystävä: I suppose they don't smell any more like minotaur then the rest of the minotaur. Narrator: A few hours' travel leaves Wolfgang is dragging his sore and aching feet. The delvers are directed to spin three times and walk back into a mass of brush that they just left, which parts to reveal the tiny village of pixies. Wolfgang bitches like a soldier Ystävä grunts. "There is the flower people place. For the flower people. Who can with the fly." Ystävä: ... Wren Seaspray Belladonna: "You're back! And you rescued everyone! That's fantastic! We're going to have a huge celebration tonight. I mean, we were going to anyway, but now you're here so it will be even bigger!" She looks at Bedlam with great curiousity. "Did you guys reproduce somehow? Is this a larval form of the minotaur or something?" Ystävä: Checking to see if I just shake them off like a wet dog. Bad Temperresult: ?succeeded by 5 » Bedlam looks at the other delvers. "Is she talking about me?" Wolfgang: "You should see his pet cat!" Beltarne: "Where did it go....." Ystävä starts trying to untangle pixies from his horns. Bedlam: "Mouser is around somewhere, I'm sure. Hopefully staying out of trouble." Wren Seaspray Belladonna: She flies around again. "Wow, this is so great." She zooms past Ystava. "You have a lot of holes in your amor. How did that happen? Wouldn't that have hurt a bunch?" She flies back to Artegal, lands on his pauldron, and bats her eyes. "Now then... how were we supposed to reward you for your service?" Bedlam opens his mouth to speak. Wolfgang: "Magic stuff, right?" Bedlam looks confused, but shuts his mouth. Artegal looks somewhat upset. "To start with, swear on your honor to leave the antmen alone. I'm not at all proud of what we just had to do to rescue your people, madam, and I want it to be clear that we won't be doing it again." He gestures to Beltarne. "As to the rest of the reward, take it up with the dwarf. I've a camp to make." GM: I've honestly forgotten what the hell you were promised. Beltarne: Happy thoughts Beltarne: IIRC Beltarne: We did it out of the kindness of our hearts, if I recall. Ystävä: (( I"m going to go look at the log file now. )) Ystävä: I want mah money. Wren Seaspray Belladonna: "What? Sure, we'll leave them alone as long as they leave us alone. They're always coming and bothering us and being tedious and not trading goods and they never have any wine. We really don't like them at all." Artegal: (We were promised 'whatever we hadn't already bought from their trade goods', or at least the sword and the axe we were looking at.) Ystävä: I knew there was something. Artegal: (SM 0 Balanced Greatsword, Fine Dueling Bill) Artegal: (Found it. :D) Wolfgang: (( woot! loot! )) Narrator: Wren flies over to the greatsword that Torvall had been eyeing earlier, picks it up with some effort, and flies it back to him. Behind her, a pair of her attendants carry the dueling bill. Ystävä: (( and yes, it looks like tinkerbelle carrying a greatsword )) Beltarne: "Well, suppose that will have to do." Beltarne mutters grumpily. Torvall: "Quite strong for their size I see." Wren Seaspray Belladonna: "Your reward! Thank you so much! Oh, say, did you kill whatever abomination was breeding those horrible flying antmen? They're quite the bother, always flying into the forest and trying to kidnap us." Artegal: "We reached an accomodation with them after forcing our way into the hive." Ystävä: "We hit the guys." Wolfgang: "I think they just can fly sometimes, since we got back all your people" Wolfgang: "I think horrible abominations are more in the creepy druid's line of work" Wolfgang: "Eagles, with moss! What a mess." Wren Seaspray Belladonna: "An accomodation? That doesn't sound as good as killing all the flying antmen." She flits around a bit, considering. "Well, you did rescue everyone, that was very nice of you, and you got the reward we promised you, so that's fine and we don't need to give you anything else since you didn't do everything you said you would but we're still very happy that you rescued everyone and that you didn't die!" Wren Seaspray Belladonna: "You can stay here tonight but I'm worried that you're going to step on someone house soon or maybe drink all the wine or some other calamity so you need to leave in the morning okay?" Artegal: "We'll camp the night and be off at first light." Ystävä: "We go to smash the ogres in the heads." Wolfgang: "First we go to town to ease the burden on the horses and buy them more food" Ystävä: "Then with the ogres and the heads and the smashing." Ystävä: "In the head." Ystävä: "With the ogres." Beltarne: "Don't like ogres, eh?" Ystävä: "They the goblins with the not-smallness." Bedlam: "Sounds like fun guys. I am eager to meet them." Wolfgang: "Big, dumber, takes a few more hits to make into dirt." Ystävä: "Make the bigger noise when you smash them in the heads." Narrator: The delvers spend the night uneventfully in the clearing of Baile Mordred as the pixies party around them. The next morning is warm, the early morning fogs quickly blown away by the blazing sun and the light winds. It is the high holy day of the gods of the Night. Wolfgang: (( shouldn't they have a holy night? )) Bedlam: "He awakens to the burning hot sun greeting him with sultry smile." Ystävä wakes up, sweaty and smelling even more like minotaur. GM: Lovely. What now? Wolfgang: back to town! Artegal: On the march for Polisberg. Wolfgang: no detours Beltarne: Before we go to bed I wave the healy hands over everyone that needed it. Ystävä: We go home, sell loot, resupply, and then go smash ogres! Wolfgang: no side quests Ystävä: Oh! Ystävä: Healing! Beltarne: Shall I roll to see if I crit fail? GM: Beltarne: yes. Torvall: I will pick up whatever slack Beltarne leaves. Ystävä: I'm down 13, so 7 scaled for normal people. Torvall: And I can heal 24 HP at a time if necessary.... Torvall: Just need a bit of a rest after..about an hour. Ystävä: Two healers in the party is love. Beltarne: What's the max bonus I can get for waving hands and shouting? +3? GM: Yes. Artegal: Artegal needs only 4 points of healing. Artegal: I think. Artegal: Wait, no, only one! Artegal: Joy! Torvall: I need 11...and I cannot heal myself. Beltarne: First Aid/TL3 (Human) result: ?succeeded by 6 Artegal: Possibly recovered via first aid post-fight, even. Beltarne: 4 for artegal Beltarne: First Aid/TL3 (Human) result: ?succeeded by 7 Beltarne: 2 for torvall Ystävä: Oh. Am I still -1 to horn attacks? GM: Torvall needs more healing if you guys were to have made speed across the swamp. Ystävä: We had time to try healing him and rest a little to recover FP before marching far, right? Beltarne: Major Healing (Holy) result: ?failed by 1 Bedlam: ((how much healing does he need?)) GM: Until the damage heals. Beltarne: Luck. Beltarne: Major Healing (Holy) result: ?succeeded by 1 GM: And yes, you can rest 30 minutes before marching. Beltarne: Major Healing (Holy) result: ?succeeded by 2 Beltarne: Major Healing (Holy) result: ?succeeded by 6 Beltarne: That's for Torvall. Torvall: Should only be down by 1 if that was a heal for 8. Beltarne: Yup Beltarne: Can't do text then roller, apparently Ystävä: Sure you can? Beltarne: So you need to be at full HP or you're gimgy Beltarne: I typed then did the macro and the macro wiped out what I had typed instead of adding it to the end. Ystävä: Oh, the buttons? Ystävä: Yeah, no, not those. Ystävä: but typing it into chat works. Beltarne: Yes, I know Beltarne: So does Torvall need to be completely healed or he will be gimpy? GM: Has to be above 1/3 HP. Beltarne: Okay, well, mission accomplished Beltarne: We are done healing, no crit failures. Torvall: "Thank you freind dwarf." GM: Great. Beltarne: "No problem, it's what I do!" GM: So. GM: Next morning. What's the plan? Artegal: Polisberg, best speed. Torvall: Polisburg...Ho! Beltarne: Yup. Wolfgang: Polisberg, best speed. Ystävä: (( sorry back. )) Ystävä: Yeah Sytava next day? Ystävä: yh. GM: Are you guys just planning to teleport there or what? I don't do destinations, I do directions. Ystävä: Sorry, I can't type. Ystävä: I'm back, do we heal Ystava or did that happen while I was downstairs. Beltarne: Lets see if we can find the road. Beltarne: You're healed Beltarne: Demons begone! Bedlam: i have navigation, actually Ystävä: Hurray! Artegal: Northeast to the road from Baile Mordred, then retrace our steps as followed on the way here? Ystävä: How's your score? Ystävä: You're probably better just by not being an idiot. Bedlam: not great - 14 Torvall: Torvall has Nav 12 as well. Ystävä: 14 here too from psending too many points on it. Ystävä: One of us roll, the other two help? GM: Okay, Ystava can definitely lead you back to the road. Ystävä: I've got a compass in my head! Wolfgang: it's like magic! Wolfgang: but not Bedlam: didn't your mother tell you not to stick things up your nose? Ystävä: My mother told me I will ride the bear! Ystävä: And the thing with the nose. Yes. Beltarne: A wise woman. Narrator: The delvers load up the horses and begin marching out of Baile Morded. Before they have marched a dozen yards, they hear Wren wailing behind them. As they turn to see what the matter is, everything in sight turns yellow and green. There's disconcerting moment as the sky sounds lilac and then the colors fade again. Ystävä: Dwa? Wolfgang: Are we elsewhere? Artegal: "Eh? Wot?" Narrator: The delvers find themselves in a valley, surrounded by rugged hills on all sides. The black stone mountains, half visible on the horizon at the Antman mounds, tower over the landscape to the northwest. Bedlam thoughfully combs his fingers through his beard. Artegal: "Oh, rot." Ystävä clutches his head as his compass goes SPANG. Beltarne: "Tyr bless it. Not again." You whisper to Ystävä: You think you are to the west of you where you were, but you're not sure how far. Torvall looks around. "So does this kind of thing happen a lot around here?" Wolfgang: "Far too often." Bedlam: "I hope Mouser can find me again." Mouser: Growls at the surroundings. Bedlam: "Ha! There you are, old chum." Beltarne: "Tends to bring everyone nearby with you" Wolfgang looks for pixies Beltarne gestures at Bonnie and Clyde, both blinking complacently. Artegal: "Someone take a bearing and see about getting us home." Ystävä spins around, trying to reset his inner compass needle. Bonnie: Blink, blink. Beltarne: "Wolfgang, feel like taking a look-see?" Clyde: Blink, blink. Ystävä: (( this works on my Ford. )) Bedlam looks around for familiar landmarks. Wolfgang: "No problem" Wolfgang: "The ant mounds are up that way, so am I looking for a trail or what?" Bedlam: ((I don't suppose mouser can use tracking to get us anywhere useful?)) Ystävä: (( We didn't leave any tracks. )) GM: No. Ystävä: I would like to try Navigation to try and get my bearings again! Probably at some sort of penalty, but hey. Bedlam: me too Ystävä: At least reconnect with my mental map. Find my satelites, etc. Wolfgang: (( this is navigation, but we have some landmarks already that we were just at, so should be somewhat easy if they can estimate the distance )) Beltarne: ((No, the mounds aren't in sight. Mountains that were on the horizon AT the mounds are now very big)) Wolfgang: (( oh, I misread then )) GM whispers to Wolfgang: Your quick flyover looks similar to a lot of the other times you've flown high around here. You're somewhere to the west of the Antmen Mounds in the hills, with a forest north of you and a wide river running east out of the hills and into the swamp to the northwest. Beltarne: Looks like we're to the sountheast of the "Ebon Teeth" on the new ant-man map. Ystävä: I will roll some random dice! Navigation/TL3 (Land) result: ?succeeded by 6» Wolfgang whispers: are we north or south of the river? GM whispers to Wolfgang: Southwest of the river. Bedlam: Navigation/TL3 (Land) result: ?succeeded by 8 Wolfgang comes back and reports GM: Ystava estimates that he is lost, somewhere nearly due west of where he was. As does Bedlam. Torvall: Navigation - result: ?succeeded by 0 » Beltarne: How about nearby bodies of water? GM: Torvall is less sure of due west, but maybe WNW or WSW. Wolfgang: "We're somewhere to the west of the Antmen Mounds in the hills, with a forest north of us and a wide river running east out of the hills and into the swamp to the northwest. We are southwest of the river." Beltarne: Like that horizontal lake or river or whatever near the iron mines on the map. Beltarne: AHA! Beltarne: Eureka! Beltarne: Which is dwarven for "I think I know where we are!" GM: Visibly, you're in a valley, without any streams, creeks, ponds, lakes, rivers, or oceans in the limited sight lines. Beltarne scowls at the map. Bedlam: "Yes, we're in a valley." Beltarne: "I can't make heads or tails of this." Beltarne: ((Since Beltarne doesn't actually have land nav.)) Beltarne hands the map to someone more competent at not getting lost in the woods. Ystävä: So we aren't within 3 miles of the lake. GM: He is pretty smart, though... Bedlam scowls at the map as well. Bedlam: "What are these squigly things all over?" Ystävä: Or less than 3 miles what with mountains, but more than that from aerial surveilance, so I'll call it 3ish miles. GM: You may be within 3 miles of the lake, but you can't see it over the hill ridges. Beltarne: ((And pretty! Tell me I'm pretty!)) GM: Wolfgang did see the lake to the south. Ystävä: Wohah, just saw the scale on that map. Ystävä: Much smaller than I thought. Ystävä: South? Ystävä: Wouldn't that put us in forest then not hills? Beltarne: We're southwest Beltarne: of the river Beltarne: so near the iron mines. Ystävä: The question is, north south east or west of the iron mines Beltarne: Looks like we can cut north through the silent forest if we can cross this river Ystävä: True, we could just go north until we hit road. Beltarne: Do we care? Head north and we hit the road? Beltarne: Yah Wolfgang: yes Bedlam: yes Beltarne: That's a majority, we're off! Ystävä: Hi ho, etc. Ystävä: North, more or less due. Narrator: The delvers trek off across the hills, climbing over ridges and descending back into the valleys. Beltarne thinks the local stone may be high in iron ores. Ystävä: Oh good. Means we're nearby. Wolfgang does the fast flying scout thing to try and speed us along with no encounters Narrator: Time passes, the sun rising in the sky. Nearly two hours later, they begin to see trees in the distance and cross a shaded stream. As they plunge into the woods, they notice something odd: they don't hear anything. Artegal: ...Don't hear any background noises, or can't hear ANYTHING? GM: Your characters can only communicate by gesture or sign language now, as when you try to speak, you make no noise. Spell casting is silent. You can't hear anything or make any noise. Wolfgang: "Maybe we should go around the silent forest?" Narrator: Wolfgang mouths some words that no one hears. Bedlam: "..." Artegal backs out of the woods with a scowl. Narrator: Clear of the trees, the delvers' hearing returns. Beltarne ditto Wolfgang follows our silent leader Bedlam points at his ears with a look of horror on his face. He appears to be shouting. Beltarne: "That is bad." Bedlam leaves the woods as well. Artegal: "Okay, go around or press through?" Bedlam: "Oh. For a moment there I thought I'd gone deaf." Torvall follows the others, bemused. Wolfgang: "Should be able to head east a bit and go around, right?" Beltarne: "Around." Ystävä stomps back out again, and looks much happier when he stomps properly. Artegal: "Right then. Lead on, around the woods." Beltarne: "It'll be very hard for me to heal anyone properly if we run into trouble in there." Bedlam: "I don't like the idea that something might sneak up on us without being able to hear it. And Mouser probably doesn't like it either." Torvall: I am unsure if I can heal in silence or not... Beltarne: "And way too easy for giant multi-legged monsters to sneak up on us." Wolfgang: "No doubt there is something horrible in there that takes advantage of the silence to hunt" Beltarne: We skirt... west? Beltarne: East is swamp Artegal: West is mountains. East it is. Beltarne: I dunno if it'd be faster to slog through it than do the detour. Bedlam: "East should take us to a road if that map is right." Wolfgang: we're going to have to go east anyhow I think Wolfgang: to catch the road Ystävä: North road Ystävä: Along the red line Ystävä: Although that is close to the 'Greeny parasites' Mrugnak is happy with smashing goblins. Wolfgang: (( if you look at the big long map, we have to go east to get around the non-swamp side of the lake with the harpy island )) GM: okay, east or west for the detour? Sounds like east but just checking. Artegal: Yeah, in fact due east wouldn't serve us too badly, I think. Artegal: Or northeast. Bedlam: "I'll take my chances in the swamp. How about you, Mouser?" Wolfgang: (( I dunno how fast jagged mountains vs. swamp is )) Artegal: East around the woods, then northeast, I think. GM: About the same, really. Beltarne: Works for me. Wolfgang: east, staying out of the swamp if we can manage it without being silenced? GM: Sure.